UMUC Faculty Honored for Scholarship and Teaching Excellence

Seventeen outstanding faculty members at the University of Maryland University College were honored for their contributions to scholarship and teaching at UMUC’s annual Academic Achievement Celebration on May 9.

Drazek Award Winners

The Stanley J. Drazek Teaching Excellence Award recognizes effective and innovative teaching methods. Faculty are nominated for the award by students and selected by their fellow faculty members. The award is named after the University’s second president, who was a champion of teaching excellence.

In nominating Drazek winner Courtney Anderson of The Graduate School, one of her students said, “she is highly interactive with her students and a cheerleader for students to help them achieve at higher levels than they thought possible.” Anderson teaches in the Business and Executive Programs department.

Eric Dent, the second Drazek winner from The Graduate School, is a professor in the Doctor of Management Program and was recognized by his students for “adding the most value to their writing ability and for helping them locate literature relevant to their thesis topic.”

Drazek winners from the Undergraduate School were Gro Torsethaugen and Margo Coleman-Seiffert. Torsethaugen, known as “Dr. Grew” to her students, teaches some of the most demanding general education courses in the science curriculum and is noted for her ability to encourage class participation and interactivity among his students.

Coleman-Seiffert has been a member of the UMUC faculty since 2003 and currently teaches in the Psychology and Math/Statistics departments. Students in her Introduction to Psychology class and Research Methods and Statistics for Behavioral Sciences class rave about how she keeps a close eye on their academic progress.

Teaching Recognition Awards

In addition to the Drazek awards, students also nominate faculty for the Teaching Recognition Awards, which went to Michael Martin and Murray Blank from The Graduate School and Amanda W. Barnett, Johnnie Brown, Roberta Bush, Martin K. Gordon, Patricia Martner-Hewes, and Raphael Oguariri from the Undergraduate School.

USM Regents Award

Irena Bojanova, a collegiate professor and director of the Telecommunications Management specialization in The Graduate School, received the prestigious University System of Maryland Board of Regents Faculty Award.

Bojanova has distinguished herself by her teaching and innovations in online education. A student nominator said Bojanova “is the best instructor I have had since I’ve been at UMUC. She is very patient, understanding, and incredibly knowledgeable. Rarely does a teacher display such expertise and enthusiasm.”

Outstanding Scholarly Research

Highlighting UMUC’s growing body of scholarly research, the Provost’s Award for Best Paper in Online Education Research went to Rana Khan and Rudy Watson for their paper, entitled “Improving Graduate Student Writing Skills through Embedded Writing Coaches.”

Using a case-study approach, the research explores effective strategies used for designing cases, structuring and facilitating online case discussions, setting expectations for student participation, and developing appropriate assessment.

Horn Named Professor Emeritus

The designation of Professor Emeritus is awarded only to those faculty members, who throughout a distinguished career have consistently embodied academic excellence and innovation while always putting students first.

In honoring Robert Horn with the distinction of Emeritus Professor, UMUC Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Marie Cini noted Horn’s outstanding career and his teaching of human resources management in the Business and Management department at UMUC since 2005.

Goodwin Honored

Robert Goodwin received a special award for his outstanding contributions while serving as acting vice provost and dean of The Graduate School since 2011.

Goodwin began teaching graduate courses in international management as an adjunct faculty member at UMUC in 1990. He joined the full-time faculty in 2005 and has since held several leadership positions, including chair of the Business and Executive Programs Department, executive director of the MBA program and director of the master in international management program.

In June, Goodwin will return to the position of chair of the Business and Executive Programs Department.